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Finally went on Vacation

Curtis

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Joined
Nov 28, 2005
Messages
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Location
Rhome, Texas
First Name
Curtis
Last Name
Johnson
Finally went on vacation.
Unfortunately the wife doesn’t ride. Or should I say, won’t ride.
We took a short 7 day trip to Northern New Mexico.
And since I couldn’t go without the SO we compromised.
We took my Pickup filled with camping gear and clothes, and trailered my KLR.
Oh well, It was better than nothing.
We did the Hampton Inn at Roswell for the first night. I looked out the room window at my KLR on the trailer and my heart just sank. I sure wished I was riding.

Then we went and did the Tourist thing in Los Alamos.
A place I’ve been promising myself I would visit Los Alamos because I used to have friends who lived there.
And interesting little town, if you’re a Nuclear Physist or Rocket Scientist.
Something I always wanted to be growing up. But, that’s another story.

Anyway, Finally I got to get the KLR off the trailer and was ready to take it for a spin in Los Alamos.

But the battery was dead. Bummer!
I charged it with a charger, but two hours later it was getting too late for a ride, and we had no place picked out to sleep so there it sat. All on the trailer.

Found a Bed And Breakfast and the Owners were nice. He was an Retired Electronics Scientist from "THE LAB”. A term I’d learn to appreciate later.
He loved to build things. So we hit it off right away. Not to mention he. was a Dodge Cummins Fan. Something I could talk to him about at length. Imagine, ME, talking on level ground with a Rocket Scientist!

If you ever in Los Alamos and need a Bed & Breakfast (Very Affordable too) look it up. They are in White Rock, just around the corner from "The LAB".
And just so you’ll know, it won’t be what you expect. It’s better!
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(Clint and Sharon)

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(Melissa @ Back Porch Bed & Breakfast sign.)

We did the usual Science Museums Tourist Tour thing, Places which I could have spent a week at, and then did the Canyon thing.

Finally, we moved on, and lucky for you this is a bike trip report sort of.
We moseyed up to Taos and I was really disappointed. I needed my buddy Criz with me to appreciate the ART World. So, we decided to dust off our shoes and hustle onward to Red River New Mexico.

Since my S.O. is from Royalty, we had to spend at least a night or two in a "Proper Place".


The "Lodge Ski Resort". In the summer! A nice laid back place to hang her Crown.
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I promised the wife some time doing the “Shopping/ Tourist Thing” as long as I could stand it.
So we did, FOR TWO DAYS! Yech!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then, I had to INSIST that we spend some time doing my thing, so we moved out of the “Lodge” and into my Wal Mart Special soft sided Hotel.

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Princess wasn’t real happy with the prospect of no showers, electricity or bathrooms, but she capitulated and made the most of it.

Would you believe it? Here she is, sleeping on about $200 dollars worth of Cabellas cot, pad and sleeping bag, and she doesn’t even use it all?
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Then early on the 4th day I got the bike off the trailer and got the battery charged up.

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Since we were now camped outside town about 2.5 miles we started using the KLR for our running around transportation. Something I could never have talked her into (if you know Melissa, you’ll know understand the brevity of that statement) but there was rented scooters everywhere and lots of folks using two wheels to get around town. SO, it made perfect sense.
I had to point out that by bringing our own bike we could have more money for shopping. She bought it!
Hook line and sinker!

A view from the top of the mountain on top of the Ski Area.
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Thanks for the T shirt Criz! Got a lot of positive comments on it.
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We rode the KLR up and down Main Street frpm one store to another until I thought I was going to PUKE!
Sorry, no pictures.

Then, I “TOOK A WRONG TURN” he, he! (Wink, wink!)
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We wandered up the road until it got too cold for us to be there and looked like rain moving in on us.
Missy was spooked for the first 20 miles up the gravel road but, once we started down she relaxed and started enjoying herself.

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You can see the Ski Runs across the valley on the other mountain.
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We rode back into town for our jackets and had a really nice Dinner at Timbers. Highly recommend it BTY!

After the initial shock of a wrong turn and with the weather clearing uo, we struck out again.
This time on purpose we rode east.
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And this time, I took the GPS so I could “Get Lost”.
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Even found a really nice bunch of homes and a lake or two.
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What a tough place to live!


We rode as far as we could go. About 18 miles back up into the valley, and then it turned into a very wet hiking trail that would have been too much for the KLR Two Up. So we stopped and looked around.

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Love that tank bag with the back pack straps. It carried our snacks, water and jackets with ease.

We even found some wild strawberries. Which she promptly ate.
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You know, We grow them bigger in Texas!
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We even came across a pretty cool river streams that I could really get into.
But since it’s mostly melted snow I declined a swim.
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There were even Trout waiting to be picked out of the river by hand.

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I swear we had the most primo camping spot in the entire valley.
Talk about having a Babbling Brook right next to your camp.


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And the toughest part we had to endure,
85 degree days and 40 degree nights.
We even had to wear jackets until noon.

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But, time grew short, and we had to say goodbye to all the little forest creatures.
The Chipmunks came out to see us off.

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Humming Birds even dropped by for one last drink.
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Princess Missy posed for one last picture.

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Then forced me to pose for one too!

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Can you tell I was bummed?
Bummed about having to return to the thought of WORK, and Texas HEAT!

We made it home last night (Sat) just before midnight.

Best part of the whole trip, (if you know me, you’ll really appreciate this part,)
Missy is now talking about the possibility of getting a bigger bike to go riding together on.
If you look closely at my bike pictures, you’ll see I added a pad to the Rear Rack for the Royal Rear!
Not Pretty BUT, It worked! YEA!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for reading.
Curtis
 
Looks you had a blast.

I am glad you finally got some time off from work!
 
I had to point out that by bringing our own bike we could save more money for shopping. She bought!

:rofl: You should have sold used cars, Curtis! :lol2:

Missy is now talking about the possibility of getting a bigger bike to go riding together on.

:thumb: Sounds like a winner.

Great report! Very funny, too. :clap:

Now, does Melissa read these? :eek2:
 
:rofl: You should have sold used cars, Curtis! :lol2:



:thumb: Sounds like a winner.

Great report! Very funny, too. :clap:

Now, does Melissa read these? :eek2:

Of Course she does. Just not yet!

I'll let you know her reaction later.:eek2:

Curtis
 
I'll let you know her reaction later.:eek2:

Let me know if you need a place to sleep... ;-)

It was funny about not using all of the sleeping bag, tho! :lol2:
Now, the temps were great there for camping! :zen:
 
Let me know if you need a place to sleep... ;-)

It was funny about not using all of the sleeping bag, tho! :lol2:
Now, the temps were great there for camping! :zen:

Did you notice she didn't even use but 2/3rds of the cot?:lol2:

Naw, I'm good. Got the Motorhome in the shop if I need it.

She read most of it just now, and wanted me to explain that most of her fears were because of the stories of bears and no electricity or real bathrooms.;-)
The head was really smelly until we sprayed it down with air freshener.
I highly recommend air freshener! The cheaper the better!
The other campers really appreciated the efforts. We left half a can of it in the potty when we left.
I did find an RV place that would rent showers for $6 a visit. That was a God Send! She would have never hung in there for three days with out that little creature comfort.

Curtis
 
Great read and great pic's! Dee looked over at just the right time and yelled, 'that's Curtis!' We had to go through all the pix again, LOL!

Let me know and I'll bring the ST by and you can give it a run w/Melissa if you want.
 
Excellent report Curtis! A++

More motivation to get out of this heat this time of year.
 
Nice trip Curtis. Glad to hear that Melissa did some 2 up riding while there. Maybe that spark will grow and she will want to come riding with you again.
 
Thanks for the Props Guys!
I think if I do buy another bigger bike, it will probably be a GS 1200.
We've decided it would have to be another Dual Sport, if she was going to ride it.
You see the excuse we have for such a monster is She wants to take it up into the mountains in search of hiking trails and back woods camping. And, besides, I'm gonna need the power to get her cot and shower up the mountain.:giveup:

Would you believe that at this moment she's in the living room shopping online for a Jeep to take back up to New Mexico?
She has this image in her head of herself riding around the mountains with the top down and doors off. Wearing shorts, white starched shirt, a Cowboy hat and hiking boots.

What ever it takes to get more toys, I'm all for.
And I insisted it have a hitch for the bike trailer.

Life takes some funny turns, doesn't it? :sun:

Curtis
 
...........Would you believe that at this moment she's in the living room shopping online for a Jeep to take back up to New Mexico?
She has this image in her head of herself riding around the mountains with the top down and doors off. Wearing shorts, white starched shirt, a Cowboy hat and hiking boots.........

That's an attractive picture she paints.......
Whatever it takes to keep the missus happy!

It's great that you were able to get away.

We were up in Angel Fire in May (by car) with trips to Santa Fe, Bandolier National Monument park, Taos, Red River and a loop into Colorado for "The Legends Highway". Two days of snow was heaven.

Northern New Mexico is an incredible getaway and always cooler than here.
 
She read most of it just now, and wanted me to explain that most of her fears were because of the stories of bears and no electricity or real bathrooms.;-)

I think you lost me... So next time she's hoping to share a bathroom with an electric bear?
:lol2:

Nice report, though next time the cot picture needs to really show the full length of the cot to emphasize your point.
 
Just go with the flow, Curtis. Glad you got a great vacation at cooler elevations.

My wife doesn't ride, either, but that's just a minor nit in the grand scheme of things. I still wouldn't trade her. She is up for the camping stuff, although we both prefer a tent trailer these days.
 
Looks like you had fun. Great pics.

I'd show you our MI vac. pics but there are no cycle pics in it.
 
Nice report, though next time the cot picture needs to really show the full length of the cot to emphasize your point.

My God Man, How big do you think that tent is.:giveup:
I was lucky to get as much of the cot in the frame as I did.
I figured my readers could look at the lower half and double it for the full length effect.
Plus, I wanted to show the sleeping bag hanging off the end of it too.

We had fun. We were wishing we had the Motorcoach with us, but decided it wasn't worth the expense for a 7 day trip.

I used to have a Pop Up Trailer that I wished I'd kept.
May even look at getting another Jayco for these short trips.
This time maybe a Baja Pop Up.
http://www.jayco.com/php/products/camping.trailers/trailer.php?id=147

I had a 1207 when we met, many good times in it.

I've got to go back to work tonight, man I wish I was back in the Mountains.

Curtis
 
Hooray Curtis!!!!! I am glad you both had fun! I wish you guys could have come by here. Joe would be happy to run you down the river.
 
Hooray Curtis!!!!! I am glad you both had fun! I wish you guys could have come by here. Joe would be happy to run you down the river.


Believe me, So do I.
I tried to pass a message along to you but without internet service where I was, it was a no go. We had the time, and wern't THAT far from Buena Vista. We actually headed out to Colorado Thursday AM and was thinking about heading to Uray. But, then we got to thinking about it and the part about "insisting" came into play and WE decided to stay at Red River and play a little more in earnest. That's when we started riding the bike up the "wrong roads". It all got better after that.IMHO :rider: We hung out there in RR 5 days total.
Had I been able to get my message through to you, I'm sure we would have come up to play on the river. I did have cell service, but no #.
Would have loved the Teepee thing. After all, I am an old Hippee from Southern California,:lol2: Your vacation looks like way too much fun for one person.:mrgreen:

Maybe next year I'll have to tag along with the group as the official mechanic. After all I was one for the R.A.A.M some years back.

Curtis
 
:thumb: Top notch Curtis, you even got your lady riding with you.

Isn't New Mexico absolute perfection for dual sporters? :zen:
 
Then, I “TOOK A WRONG TURN” he, he! (Wink, wink!)
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I think I was at that turn about 6 weeks ago. My jacket has been collecting dust since.

FYI, you can rent Jeeps in Red River, most of the ones you see are rentals if you were north of town heading towards Greenie Peak.
 
Hi Sandy, where have you guys been. Haven't seen or heard from you two since you got back. Ya'll need to come out to the Friday Night Ice Cream thingy.

Melissa & I would be living there now if it weren't for the fact that everyone of the Locals we met all worked 2,3 & 4 jobs just to get by.

We are talking about maybe retiring there, if I can't talk her into Costa Rica.
(Don't want to be here to witness the upcoming Civil War.)

We talked about renting a jeep, but decided after the first ride out of town not to. It would have cut into our shopping budget, Don't you know?:eek2:

I actually spent 8 years of my youth in Roswell and we would vacation often in the Mountains. My Dad loved to haul his Shasta Trailer up there and camp out next to a running river. 5 people in a 16' camper made for some interesting times.

If ya'll are wondering where I made the wrong turn, just go to the Bicycle Rental Shop "Sitzmark Sports & Lodging" on Main St. (Hwy 38) and turn North. Follow the Camping Signs. up the Mountain and you'll get a heck of a ride.

Later we bought a map, which is still in my tank bag.
I went and retrieved it. (Now I"ll be editing in the actual names of places) (great just what I need to do this morning ) :yawn:
The road is Mallette Road and it goes up to Cabresto Lake. The sign says it road 597 out of town. Lots of trails, old mines and primitive camping up there, with tons of Jeep Trails. Or Dual Sport Trails as we call them.:rofl:

If you keep your eyes open you'll see all kinds of interesting things right next to the road.
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Looking forward to going back. Oh and BTY, for the record, we made the entire trip on one tank of fuel. Even have some left over. (The fact that my Dodge has a 140 gallon diesel tank had nothing to do with it.:rofl: )

Curtis
 
Hey Curtis...we've been busy, as usual. 2nd shift doesn't allow for much socializing, which is really OK, since I'm fairly antisocial. :lol2:
 
Hey Curtis...we've been busy, as usual. 2nd shift doesn't allow for much socializing, which is really OK, since I'm fairly antisocial. :lol2:


I get that way myself so I understand.

I work second shift too! It's only a temporary thing for the Summer months tho.
If you look at the post time you'll understand I just got home and have to wind down before going to bed.
So I catch up on whats going on here.


Didn't you guys re-locate to the west side after you came back?

Anyway, tell Scott I said HAY!

Curtis
 
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